Newly unveiled federal data indicates that more crude oil was spilled in US railway incidents in 2013 than in the prior 37 years combined, inspiring lawmakers to push for new safety standards that could avoid similarly devastating incidents in the future.

Altogether, 800,000 gallons spilled from US railroads in the
years from 1975 to 2010. That data, which comes from the Pipeline
and Hazardous Material Safety Administration, does not include
records of Canadian spills, some of which are thought to surpass
one million gallons spilled on their own.

In part because of major derailments in Alabama and North Dakota,
over 1.15 million gallons of crude oil seeped from train cars.

North Dakota crude, the type of oil examined in the government
research, tends to have very low density, which means it is made
of more volatile compounds that could increase its flammability
and make the crude more difficult to clean up.

A single rail car contains approximately 28,800 gallons of oil.
According to McClatchy newspapers, 400,000 carloads – over 11.5
billion gallons – were shipped across the continent in 2013. That
is an astounding success rate of 99.99 percent, although the
spills that did occur were problematic enough to make
international headlines.

Nearly 30 cars of a 90-car train derailed in early November in
rural Alabama. No one was killed in the accident, but
approximately 12 of the cars burst into flames so hot that
firefighters had no choice but to let the fire subside on its
own. Almost 750,000 gallons spilled into the Alabama wetlands and
drained into small tributaries that empty into the Tombigbee
River.

The situation was almost as severe near Casselton, North Dakota
on December 30. The National Transportation Safety Board told
McClatchy that it is not done investigating the incident, but
estimates that at least 400,000 gallons of crude oil were spilled
in a derailment. The spill forced 2,400 people to evacuate their
homes in subzero temperatures.

The data does not account for Canadian accidents, including the
catastrophic spill in Lac-Megantic, Quebec. On July 6, a runaway
train from North Dakota derailed and exploded, killing 47 people
and devastating the small Quebec town.

Responding to the string of incidents, North Dakota Gov. Jack
Dalrymple said Tuesday that new railway safety standards are
necessary and that federal officials have been too slow to
introduce standards that could curb tragic derailments like the
one in Casselton.

“Anyone who saw the video of that crash saw the fire that
came out and the explosion. That visual picture leaves an
impression on anybody, including oil producers,” he told
Reuters. “We do need some kind of provisional standard for
the next year.”